TwelveSouth MagicWand: Bring your keyboard and Magic Trackpad together as one

At Macworld Expo 2011, one of my personal highlights of the show was talking with Andrew Green, the CEO of Apple accessory design house TwelveSouth. It's always a pleasure to see what new toys the company is coming out with, so when Andrew reached into a bag and pulled out a MagicWand, I naturally paid attention.

The US$29.99 MagicWand is a deceptively simple accessory with a purpose. If you have both the Apple Wireless Keyboard and the Magic Trackpad -- not included with the MagicWand, of course -- you know how sometimes the trackpad and keyboard can move around on your desk independently, making it annoying to find the trackpad with your mousing hand when you're working on something and don't want to look at the desk. The MagicWand consists of a hard plastic channel that both the keyboard and trackpad snap into, so that you appear to have a combo keyboard-trackpad that was "Designed by Apple in California."

Lefties can be happy, since the trackpad can be placed on either side of the keyboard. Knowing that there wouldn't be a smooth seam between the two components, TwelveSouth provides a plastic "H-bar" and soft silicone insert to bridge the gap. When you need to change batteries in one of the components, it just takes a second to pop it out of the MagicWand.

I really like the feel of the combo keyboard-trackpad. Sometimes when I'm really into the flow of writing, my keyboard would actually move due to finger impacts on the keys. Now with the extra weight provided by the trackpad and the "feet" on the bottom of the MagicWand, everything stays in place on my desk. As with all of the TwelveSouth products I've had the pleasure to review before, the MagicWand is one of those "Why didn't Apple think of this?" products that is a joy to use.

If you already own an Apple Wireless Keyboard and a Magic Trackpad, the MagicWand is an accessory you're going to want to buy.